[ it doesn't take very long, which is a miracle - james is walking for a few minutes, maybe a few more than he realizes, when he hears the sound first. a loud, clear bark followed by a soft padding on unfamiliar, wide floors. james recognizes the familiarity of it before he recognizes the sound itself, his chest tightening briefly as he turns to the source of it. a sound he knows, he reacts to, he doesn't realize how much he needs to hear.
he sees padfoot a second before the mass of him barrels into james' legs, pushing him off balance and forcing him to take a step back from the force of it, just to keep from falling. a smile splits his face, laughter bubbling up from somewhere deep and buried. ]
Hey, slow down, it's okay- [ padfoot weaves tight circles around james' legs, pushing his body against him with each turn. james leans over to run his hands over padfoot's back with each circle, trying to get a better hold to actually run his hands through the mangy black hair but being unable with how quickly padfoot moves. ] C'mon, Pads, wait- [ but then james gives up, giving an over-dramatic sigh as he drops down to his knees to try and push padfoot in front of him, vigorously scratching at his back, his neck, the energy suddenly returned in affection if nothing else, rubbing and pushing and laughing each time padfoot licked at his hands, his wrist, his face. unadulterated excitement, and it lightens just enough from james' shoulders that his smile is just as honest. ]
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he sees padfoot a second before the mass of him barrels into james' legs, pushing him off balance and forcing him to take a step back from the force of it, just to keep from falling. a smile splits his face, laughter bubbling up from somewhere deep and buried. ]
Hey, slow down, it's okay- [ padfoot weaves tight circles around james' legs, pushing his body against him with each turn. james leans over to run his hands over padfoot's back with each circle, trying to get a better hold to actually run his hands through the mangy black hair but being unable with how quickly padfoot moves. ] C'mon, Pads, wait- [ but then james gives up, giving an over-dramatic sigh as he drops down to his knees to try and push padfoot in front of him, vigorously scratching at his back, his neck, the energy suddenly returned in affection if nothing else, rubbing and pushing and laughing each time padfoot licked at his hands, his wrist, his face. unadulterated excitement, and it lightens just enough from james' shoulders that his smile is just as honest. ]
Alright, alright, you win, okay, I surrender-